Here’s our guide on how to get ‘Fortnite’ on your Android device

by Mark Jansen ·
Published 12, October 2018
· Updated 12, October 2018

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Arguably the world’s biggest game, Fortnite: Battle Royale is finally available for Android devices. The game started life on Android devices with an exclusivity deal for Samsung’s devices as a part of the Galaxy Note 9‘s launch. A beta period followed that deal, with access only granted to certain devices as part of a ticketing system — but that’s over now, too. Fortnite: Battle Royale has finally been fully released on Android, and as long as your device meets the requirements, you can get in on the action, too.

Here’s how to download Fortnite: Battle Royale on Android.

A warning before we start

Slow down before you rush off to download anything called “Fortnite” from the Google Play Store. Epic Games has not released Fortnite: Battle Royale on the Google Play Store, so you won’t find it there. That’s important to note because it means no app on the Play Store is going to be the official Fortnite app — no matter how loudly it says it is.

While some are likely to be harmless clones, others may be harmful apps that seek to steal your personal data.

Be aware of what you’re downloading, and if your aim is to download only the official Fortnite: Battle Royale Android app, follow this guide and we’ll make sure you get the goods.

Which Android devices are able to play Fortnite: Battle Royale?

Android is an exceptionally large church, so there’s no definitive and complete list of phones and tablets that will be able to run Fortnite with no problems. However, Epic recommends that these Android phones will be able to run Fortnite:

The list hasn’t been updated with the latest phones though, so you can expect that the Google Pixel 3 and 3 XL, LG V40 ThinQ, Razer Phone 2, and other major flagships will be able to run the game. Epic also recommends that phones are at least running Android 8.0 Oreo, and equipped with 3GB of RAM and a GPU along the lines of the Adreno 530 or higher, Mali-G71 MP20, Mali-G72 MP12 or higher.

Still not sure if your phone is capable of running the game? As a general rule of thumb, flagship phones from the last couple of years should have no problems, while you’re on dodgier ground with midrange and budget phones. If you’re running Android 8.0 Oreo and have 3GB of RAM then you’re probably safe to try installing it.

How to download Fortnite: Battle Royale on an eligible Samsung phone

The method for getting set up on an eligible Galaxy device is easy, but it requires a couple of steps, and a lot of installing.

Start by accessing your Game Launcher app, then tap the icon marked Fortnite Installer, and then click Install & Open to install the launcher.

This app isn’t the game — instead, it’s a separate app that will be used to download and update the main Fortnite app in the absence of the Google Play Store. The first time you open the app you’ll be asked to grant it permission to access your storage. There’s nothing nefarious here; it needs access to be able to download the game.

Once installed, open the Fortnite Installer and hit the yellow Launch button to start the game. This will kick off the download of the main files. Feel free to leave the game for some time while it downloads the required files — it’s a big download and can take some time.

Following this, Fortnite will take a little time to optimize the content to suit your device — but once that’s finished, you’ll be able to sign into your account (or create a new one) and get playing.

How to get Fortnite: Battle Royale on another Android device

Because there’s no direct deal with most other Android device manufacturers, you won’t be able to download Fortnite directly from a game launcher as you would with a Samsung device. However, it’s still easy to get Fortnite installed. You’ll need to start by downloading the Fortnite Installer from Epic Games.

Either access that link on your Android device, Google “fortnite android”, or scan the QR code on PC screen on your Android device. Once you’ve downloaded the file, tap it and hit Install when prompted. You may need to grant Storage permissions to complete this process.

After that, you can either tap Open at the end of the installation process, or open the Fortnite Installer app from your app drawer or home screen. Like the process for Samsung phones, you’ll be asked to confirm Storage permissions for the installation, so feel free to tap Allow when prompted. You may also need to give the app permission to install the Fortnite game, so if prompted by a system message, hit Settings, then tick the box for Allow from this source.

Then hit the back button and hit Install. When that’s done, hit Open or open the app from your apps, and Fortnite: Battle Royale will begin downloading. This can take a little while, so grab yourself something to drink and settle down to wait.

Once it’s complete, congrats!

You’re ready to sign into your account (or create a new one) and start winning yourself some games.

All that’s left to do is to brush up on your skills with our Fortnite tips & tricks article and hurl yourself out of a bus.